Open-type combustion heater

Abstract

To provide an open-type combustion heater which can be comfortably used by setting an ON timer while setting an OFF timer with fewer operation processes.SOLUTION: A heater includes: a combustion part 9; an operation switch 42; an ON timer switch; OFF timer means 34 for starting a normal operation and stopping the normal operation after a predefined time ST; and a control part 32. When the ON timer switch 45 is operated in a first operation pattern during the normal operation, the control part 32 stops the normal operation, and then executes the ON timer operation which starts the normal operation at an ON timer time. When the ON timer switch 45 is operated in a second operation pattern which is different from the first operation pattern during the normal operation, the control part stops the normal operation after a period of a first time T1, and then executes the ON timer operation which starts the normal operation at the ON timer time. The first time T1 is shorter than the predefined time ST.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an open combustion heater such as a kerosene fan heater. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, this type of open combustion heater has had an on-timer function that automatically ignites the combustion device and starts heating operation at a preset time (for example, the next morning) (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] By the way, open combustion heaters such as kerosene fan heaters are equipped with a timer to count the time from the start of operation and automatically stop operation when a predetermined time (3 hours) has elapsed, in case you forget to turn it off. In other words, the timer is already in operation from the start of normal operation. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 4004749 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] For this reason, up until now, in open-type combustion heaters such as kerosene fan heaters, the off timer means, which automatically stops operation after a specified time (3 hours) as a measure against forgetting to turn it off, can also be used as the off timer means to stop heating operation after the specified time has elapsed. However, if the on timer operation is set while the off timer means is in operation, the operation will immediately stop and the heater will enter a standby state for on timer operation, regardless of the time elapsed since the start of operation, i.e., the remaining operating time of the off timer. Therefore, when a user wants to continue heating for a little longer but wants to remember to set the timer on for the next morning, there is no way to do so, which is inconvenient.

[0006] The present invention has been made in view of the above background, and aims to provide an open-type combustion heater that can be used comfortably by allowing the on timer to be set while the off timer is set with a small number of operating steps. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present invention has been made to achieve the above-mentioned object, and claim 1 describes a combustion unit comprising: an operation switch that starts normal operation by the combustion unit; an on-timer switch that sets on-timer operation that starts the normal operation by the combustion unit at an on-timer time; off-timer means that starts the normal operation in response to an input from the operation switch and stops the normal operation after a preset predetermined time has elapsed; and a control unit that controls the combustion unit, wherein the control unit is configured so that when the on-timer switch is operated in a first operation pattern during the normal operation, the control unit stops the normal operation and then starts the normal operation at the on-timer time, regardless of the time elapsed according to the off-timer means; and when the on-timer switch is operated in a second operation pattern different from the first operation pattern during the normal operation, the control unit stops the normal operation after a first time period and then starts the normal operation at the on-timer time, regardless of the time elapsed according to the off-timer means, and the first time period is shorter than the predetermined time.

[0008] Claim 2 is characterized in that the device is provided with an on-timer lamp, and the control unit lights up the on-timer lamp in a first lighting pattern when the on-timer switch is operated in the first operation pattern during the normal operation, lights up the on-timer lamp in a second lighting pattern different from the first lighting pattern when the on-timer switch is operated in the second operation pattern during the normal operation, and stops the normal operation after the first period of time and changes the on-timer lamp to light up in the first lighting pattern.

[0009] Claim 3 is characterized in that it comprises a first time setting means for setting the first time, and the first time setting means can set the first time to any value between 30 minutes and 1 hour. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an open-type combustion heater that can be used comfortably by setting the on timer while leaving the off timer set with a small number of operating steps. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 is a perspective view showing an external appearance of a first embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 2] 1 is a cross-sectional view of a first embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 3] 1 is a cross-sectional view of a combustion system according to a first embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 4] 1 is a front view of an operation unit according to a first embodiment of the present invention; [Figure 5] Block diagram of a first embodiment of the present invention [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram illustrating a first embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 7] FIG. 1 is a flowchart illustrating control according to a first embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] A first embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0013] Reference numeral 1 denotes the main body of the open combustion heater, 2 denotes an operating panel located at the top of the front, 3 denotes a hot air outlet fitted with louvers 4 for guiding hot air, 5 denotes a convection fan attached to the hot air intake 6 on the back via a fan guard 7, 8 denotes a blower box connecting the hot air intake 6 and the hot air outlet 3, 9 denotes a combustion section with a burner head 10 protruding into the blower box 8, 11 denotes a combustion tube that surrounds the burner head 10 to form a combustion space, and 12 denotes a heat shield disposed directly above the combustion tube 11 within the blower box 8.

[0014] The exterior body of the open-type combustion heater 1 is composed of a front panel 13 that covers the front surface, an upper surface plate 14 that covers the top surface, and a rear surface plate 15 that covers the sides and rear surface, all of which are fixed onto a stand 16.

[0015] Next, reference numeral 17 denotes a cartridge tank for supplying liquid fuel such as kerosene, 18 denotes a fixed tank for temporarily storing fuel from this cartridge tank 17, 19 denotes a float switch that turns on when the amount of fuel in the fixed tank 18 falls below a predetermined amount, 20 denotes an electromagnetic pump that pressurizes the fuel in the fixed tank 18 to the combustion section 9 via an oil delivery pipe 21 and an oil delivery nozzle 22, and 23 denotes a combustion fan that blows air for combustion through an air delivery pipe 24.

[0016] Reference numeral 25 denotes a vaporizer that vaporizes liquid fuel, 26 denotes a vaporization heater that heats the vaporizer 25 to a temperature at which the fuel can be vaporized, 27 denotes a vaporization temperature sensor that detects the temperature of the vaporizer 25, 28 denotes a flame hole network provided on the outer periphery of the burner head 10, 29 denotes a heat recovery ring that recovers combustion heat to the vaporizer 25, 30 denotes an igniter that ignites the vaporized gas by spark discharge, and 31 denotes a flame rod that monitors the state of the flame.

[0017] Reference numeral 32 denotes a control section that controls the open-type combustion heater 1, and is mainly composed of a microcomputer (not shown). Reference numeral 33 denotes an operation unit board provided in the operation unit 2, and various switches and indicator lamps provided in the operation unit 2 are connected to the control unit 32 via this operation unit board 33.

[0018] 34 is an off timer means which counts the time from the start of operation and automatically extinguishes the fire when a predetermined time ST (3 hours) has elapsed, 35 is an on timer means which starts operation of the equipment at a preset on timer time, starts normal operation by the combustion unit 9, and automatically extinguishes the fire when a specified time (for example, 1 hour) has elapsed from the start of this operation, and 36 is a fuel shortage extinguishing means which starts counting the number of drive pulses of the electromagnetic pump 20 when the remaining fuel amount becomes less than a predetermined amount, and automatically extinguishes the fire when the counted number of pulses becomes greater than a predetermined value. In addition, this fuel shortage fire extinguishing means 36 may be one that automatically extinguishes the fire after a certain period of time has passed since the amount of remaining fuel fell below a predetermined amount, or one that automatically extinguishes the fire when a second float switch detects that the amount of remaining fuel has fallen below a second predetermined amount that is less than the predetermined amount.

[0019] Reference numeral 37 denotes a saving operation means which compares the room temperature detected by a room temperature sensor 38 consisting of a thermistor with a set temperature arbitrarily set by a set temperature means 41 consisting of an up switch 39 and a down switch 40, and automatically extinguishes combustion when the room temperature exceeds the set temperature by 3°C, and automatically restarts combustion when the room temperature drops to 1°C or less below the set temperature, thereby enabling energy-saving operation that suppresses wasteful consumption of fuel.

[0020] The operation unit 2 is provided with an operation switch 42 that instructs the start and stop of normal operation of the equipment, an extension switch 43 that resets the count time of the off timer means 34 and starts counting the predetermined time ST (3 hours) again, a save operation switch 44 that switches to operation using the save operation means 37, and an on timer switch 45 that sets on timer operation using the on timer means 35. The operation unit 2 also has an operation lamp 46 located near the operation switch 42, a save operation lamp 47 located near the save operation switch 44, an on timer lamp 48 located near the on timer switch 45, a numeric display unit 50 which displays the room temperature and set temperature when in operation and which displays the time by switching the display changeover switch 49 and also makes it possible to set the on timer means 35, a refueling character display unit 51 which displays refueling characters, and a buzzer 52 which emits a sound when each switch is operated or when some kind of warning occurs, and the numeric display unit 50 and refueling character display unit 51 are located on an LCD display 53.

[0021] The on-timer switch 45 is designed to determine when the switch is released, and is configured to branch into a number of processes depending on the length of time the switch is pressed.

[0022] Next, the operation of the first embodiment will be described.

[0023] In the present invention, when the ON timer switch 45 is operated in a first operation pattern during normal operation, normal operation is immediately stopped regardless of the time that has passed until the predetermined time ST set by the OFF timer means 34, and then ON timer operation is performed in which normal operation is started at the ON timer time set by the ON timer means 35; and when the ON timer switch 45 is operated in a second operation pattern different from the first operation pattern during normal operation, normal operation is not immediately stopped, but is stopped after a first time T1 (for example, 30 minutes to 1 hour), regardless of the time that has passed until the predetermined time ST set by the OFF timer means 34, and then ON timer operation is performed in which normal operation is started at the ON timer time set by the ON timer means 35, and the first time T1 is set to be shorter than the predetermined time ST.

[0024] Details will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7. First, when the operation switch 42 is pressed (step S1), the predetermined time ST (3 hours) counted by the off timer means 34 and the initial values of each parameter are set (step S2), and the on timer time (e.g., 6:00 a.m.) is read from memory (step S3). Then, in step S4, combustion in the combustion section 9 is started, and in step S5, counting of the off timer is started. When the predetermined time ST has elapsed on the off timer in step S6, the combustion unit 9 is stopped in step S7 to stop normal operation.

[0025] In step S6, until the off timer reaches the predetermined time ST, a first time setting means is provided which accepts a change of the first time T1, which is the time for continuing heating operation by delaying the time until the combustion unit 9 stops before the on timer operation described later in step S8. The first time setting means can be set by pressing the display changeover switch 49 of the operation unit 2, and the first time T1 can be increased or decreased using the up switch 39 and down switch 40, and the first time T1 can be set arbitrarily between 30 minutes and 1 hour, for example, in 5-minute increments. If the display changeover switch 49 is not pressed, step S8 transitions to step S9.

[0026] In step S9, it is determined whether or not there is an input from the ON timer switch 45, and if there is no input from the ON timer switch 45, the process returns to step S6.

[0027] If there is an input from the on timer switch 45 in step S9, the operation pattern of the input is determined in step S10.

[0028] If the input of the on timer switch 45 is operated in the first operation pattern, regardless of the elapsed time of the off timer means 34, the combustion unit 9 is stopped and normal operation is stopped (step S11), the on timer lamp 48 is turned on in the first lighting pattern (step S12), and the system waits until the on timer time (step S13).

[0029] Here, the case where the on-timer switch 45 is operated in the first operation pattern refers to, for example, the case where the on-timer switch 45 is pressed for a short time of less than two seconds. The lighting pattern is defined by the lighting color, whether the light is continuously lit or flashing, the flashing cycle if it is flashing, the ratio of the on time to the flashing cycle (duty ratio), etc. The first lighting pattern is a lighting pattern in which the light is continuously lit in white.

[0030] Then, when a preset timer-on time (for example, 6:00 AM) is reached (step S13), combustion in the combustion unit 9 is started in step S14, and the second timer is started to count (step S15). Then, when the second timer reaches a second time (for example, 1 hour) (step S16), the process returns to step S7, and combustion is stopped.

[0031] On the other hand, if the input of the on timer switch 45 is operated in the second operation pattern in step S10, the on timer lamp 48 is turned on in the second lighting pattern (step S17), and normal operation continues for a first time T1 (e.g., one hour) without stopping the combustion unit 9 regardless of the elapsed time of the off timer means 34. That is, the first timer is started in step S18, and heating operation continues until the first timer reaches the first time T1 in step S19. Here, the first time T1 is exemplified as one hour, for example, but if the first time T1 is changed to 30 minutes in the above-mentioned step S8, heating operation will continue for 30 minutes. Thereafter, in step S11, the combustion unit 9 is stopped, the on timer lamp 48 is turned on in the first lighting pattern (step S12), and the process waits until the on timer time (step S13).

[0032] Here, the case where the on-timer switch 45 is operated in the second operation pattern refers to, for example, the case where the on-timer switch 45 is pressed and held for two seconds or more. The second lighting pattern is a lighting pattern in which the light flashes in white.

[0033] As a result, if the user wants to continue heating operation to keep warm, the operation of setting the on timer while leaving the off timer set can be done with a single operation of the on timer switch 45, and if the input to the on timer switch 45 is made in the second operation pattern, for example, even if the remaining operation time of the specified time ST is 5 minutes, heating operation will be performed for the first time T1 (for example, 30 minutes to 1 hour) after the on timer is set, so heating will not stop immediately after the on timer is set, making it extremely comfortable to use. Furthermore, even if the remaining operation time of the specified time ST is 3 hours, for example, the heating operation is performed for the first time T1 (for example, 30 minutes to 1 hour) after the ON timer is set, so the heating operation does not last for the full 3 hours, which is the maximum time of the OFF timer, but is set to a time shorter than the specified time ST of 3 hours (for example, 30 minutes to 1 hour), which provides a sense of security, is economical, and is extremely comfortable to use.

[0034] Furthermore, when the on timer switch 45 is operated in the first operation pattern, the on timer lamp 48 is lit in the first lighting pattern, whereas when the on timer switch 45 is operated in the second operation pattern, the on timer lamp 48 is lit in the second lighting pattern, and after the first time T1 has elapsed and the combustion unit 9 has stopped, the on timer lamp 48 is lit in the first lighting pattern. Therefore, when the on timer switch 45 is operated in the second operation pattern, it is possible to distinguish whether the on timer is in operation immediately after being set, or whether heating operation is in progress after the on timer time has been reached, making the unit comfortable to use.

[0035] Note that the first operation pattern has been described as a short press of the timer switch 45 for less than two seconds, and the second operation pattern has been described as a long press of the timer switch 45 for two seconds or more, but these combinations may be reversed, or other operation patterns may be used.

[0036] Although the first lighting pattern is described as a continuous lighting pattern and the second lighting pattern is described as a flashing lighting pattern, this combination may be reversed, or other lighting patterns may be used.

[0037] It should be noted that the other configurations used in this embodiment are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention, and the invention can be embodied in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included in the scope and spirit of the invention, and are also included in the inventions described in the claims and their equivalents. [Explanation of symbols]

[0038] 1: Open combustion heater 9: Combustion section 32: Control section 34: Off timer means 42: Operation switch 45: On timer switch 48: On timer lamp ST: Predetermined time T1: First Hour

Claims

1. A combustion section; an operation switch that starts normal operation by the combustion unit; an on-timer switch that sets an on-timer operation in which the normal operation by the combustion unit is started at an on-timer time; an off-timer means for starting the normal operation in response to an input from the operation switch and stopping the normal operation after a predetermined time has elapsed; A control unit that controls the combustion unit; Equipped with The control unit When the on timer switch is operated in a first operation pattern during the normal operation, After the normal operation is stopped, the on-timer operation is performed to start the normal operation at the on-timer time regardless of the elapsed time determined by the off-timer means, When the on timer switch is operated in a second operation pattern different from the first operation pattern during the normal operation, the on-timer operation is performed so that the normal operation is stopped after being performed for a first period of time, regardless of the elapsed time determined by the off-timer means, and then the on-timer operation is performed so that the normal operation is started at the on-timer time, The first time is shorter than the predetermined time. An open combustion heater characterized by:

2. Equipped with an on timer lamp, The control unit When the on-timer switch is operated in the first operation pattern during the normal operation, the on-timer lamp is turned on in a first lighting pattern; When the on-timer switch is operated in the second operation pattern during the normal operation, the on-timer lamp is lit in a second lighting pattern different from the first lighting pattern, and the normal operation is stopped after the first time period, and the on-timer lamp is changed to be lit in the first lighting pattern.

2. The open combustion heater according to claim 1.

3. a first time setting means for setting the first time; The first time setting means The first time period can be set arbitrarily between 30 minutes and 1 hour.

3. The open combustion heater according to claim 1 or 2.

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